AUTOMOTIVE

Recognising the Government’s announcement regarding the phasing out of diesel and petrol vehicles by 2040 the transportation element of the District is a fundamental consideration – both in providing non-road opportunities, particularly for freight, and in delivering zero carbon fuels.

What can the Energy Innovation District Offer?

There has already been significant research in to the impact of electric vehicles on the low voltage network through the ‘MyElectricAvenue’ and ‘Electric Nation’ projects, through mass consumer trials on real electricity networks to support smart charging and the use of demand control to support electric vehicle uptake.

In parallel, there is work being undertaken on fuel cell applications within the automotive sector, particularly with regard to heavy goods vehicles. Indeed, the distributed hydrogen application from Powerhouse Energy, see above, is being targeted as an automotive application.

An extended re-fuelling trial/commercial infrastructure will be delivered within the District – this will encompass both cars, HGV’s and potentially shipping and will consider multi – fuels. EA Technology is at the forefront of electric vehicle technology and is committed to developing the commercial case for the accelerated adoption of such technology.

In addition to delivering commercial scale low carbon energy technology, Protos will also invest in removing freight off roads by the investment of £11m in new rail and berth infrastructure.

Key Activity:Electric Nation

The Electric Nation project is being hosted by Western Power Distribution. It is being delivered by a partnership of EA Technology, DriveElectric and Lucy Electric Gridkey. The project is funded via Ofgem through its Network Innovation Allowance scheme. The project aims to provide local electricity network operators with the tools to be able to ensure that their networks can cope with this massive new challenge, whilst avoiding replacing cables and substations.